Roughing up Rivera

Mariano Rivera gave up his second homer of the season on Wednesday, a three-run shot to Curtis Granderson. Rivera then recorded the final out in a rare 1/3 inning of work to finish the Yankees 8-6 victory over Detroit. Rivera has allowed two homers this April. The 39-year-old's previous high for home runs in a season as Yankees closer is four. His ERA spiked to 3.12.

Fantasy Impact: We love Mariano Rivera and expect him to be fine from here on out. We also realize that Rivera's age must begin to be a concern at some point, and advise owners in keeper leagues to be aware of his recent struggles. If the home run numbers come up, that could be an indication that time is catching up to the sure-fire Hall of Famer.

Bullpen blues for Piniella

Kevin Gregg walked three straight batters in the eighth against Arizona, including walking in a run. His ERA climbs to 6.23. Don't panic, Gregg owners, because Carlos Marmol's ERA jumped to 6.75 as he walked in two Diamondbacks earlier in the game. Gregg is the Cubs closer, Marmol is the setup man and Jeff Samardzija might be the dark horse to leap both for the closer role. Samardzija struck out two of the three Diamondbacks he faced, although he did give up a 2-RBI double to Justin Upton. Both of the runs were charged to Marmol as the Cubs lose 10-0.

Fantasy Impact: We're not speculating that Samardzija will earn the closer job imminently, but we're thinking Lou Piniella might need to get creative if he wants to solidify his 'pen. Samardzija is an intriguing talent - a hard-throwing stud with movement and a steady demeanor. If Marmol and Gregg continue to implode, Piniella's hand may eventually be forced. Keep an eye on the situation, especially if Samardzija begins to take off in his setup role.

Closer dilemma in Denver

Manny Corpas had the day off anyway, but Huston Street might make it a two-horse back of the bullpen again with his second save of the season. Street struck out three straight Padres en route to a 7-5 Rockies win. Corpas is still the closer, but it's not long before Clint Hurdle re-evaluates the position for a second time this season.

Fantasy Impact: As has been the case in recent seasons, the Rockies bullpen remains a work in progress. Neither Street nor Corpas appears to be a great source for saves in 2009 as each takes away from the other and then gives back what he's taken. Corpas is the better bet while he's in the role, but that can change on the whim of Hurdle.

Hanrahan loses grip on closer role

The Washington Nationals closer is no longer Joel Hanrahan. Manny Acta says he's going with a bullpen by committee for now, as there is not a clear-cut favorite for the position.

Fantasy Impact: There are really no clear closers-in-waiting in Washington, although some believe Garrett Mock is an eventual option. It's hard to feel good about Mock, however, as Acta pulled him from his setup role. The best advice is to consider Joe Beimel, Julian Tavarez and Kip Wells for closer now. Beimel will be the favorite to inherit the job once he comes off the DL, but Tavarez has more experience. Somehow, that always seems to matter.

Wringing hands over Hanley

Hanley Ramirez owners have to be breathing a sigh of relief. The 95-mph fastball that hit him on his wright wrist did not cause a break. Eric Karabell says there's nothing to worry about, maybe. He doesn't like Hanley's slow start, and he's non-committal regarding what it means for the season.

Ramirez, 25, comes off his first 30/30 season, and has a career .307 batting average, so expectations are obviously sky-high. He has three stolen bases, but has also been caught stealing the same number of times. It's still early, but if you used the first pick on the guy, you expected he'd be among the leaders on ESPN's Player Rater. Currently Ramirez is No. 93, and not in the top five among shortstops (behind Jason Bartlett, Michael Young, Derek Jeter, Marco Scutaro and Asdrubal Cabrera). The last thing the slumping Marlins, and fantasy owners, need is an injury.

With no apparent broken bones, Ramirez might miss a few games, and this potentially large story shouldn't be a big deal. Then again, we've seen what wrist injuries have done to power hitters in the recent past, notably the production of Hideki Matsui and Derrek Lee. Ramirez is much younger and more talented -- he was, after all, the first player taken in most drafts -- but any decrease in power is going to affect a whole lot of fantasy owners. As it is, Ramirez is someone who was being watched to start with, and an injury can't help.

Fantasy Impact: Let's actually take a stab at the signifcance of all this. If the wrist is ok and heals quickly, there's no reason to think Ramirez is going to have a sub-standard season. He's slumped in the past. In fact, he slumped for about a month after last season's All-Star game and still put up some of the best numbers of his career. That included 125 runs, the most of any player in the big leagues in 2008. While he's got more pressure on him hitting in the middle of the Marlins order, Ramirez is only 25 years old, meaning the best years of his career are in front of him, not behind him in the most likely case. That means this year should be as good or better than last year, and if it's not, it's still going to be a good year for a shortstop in most regards. Don't freak. Ramirez is a star.

Talk about inappropriate

MLB-TV's Matt Vasgersian tried to make light of a scary injury to Brad Hawpe, and it backfired badly. File this one under: "trying too hard to create an 'anchor moment.'" Just a foolish thing to do.

Berkman's struggles

Lance Berkman provided a solo homer in a 4-1 Astros win over the Reds Monday night. His home run total is up to five on the year, but he's still struggling mightily at the plate with a .174 batting average.

Berkman is not just making outs, he's striking out at an alarming rate. For his career, Berkman has struck out in exactly 20 percent of his at bats. Last season he whiffed 19.5 percent of the time. In his sub-par 2007, the worst batting average year of his career, Berkman struck out 22 percet of the time. In 2009, he's going down on strikes in a whopping 33 percent of his at bats.

Fantasy Impact: These numbers are unprecedented over the course of Berkman's career. Looking back to 2004, Berkman's worst strikeout rate for a stand-alone month of a season is 27 percent (22 in 81 at bats) back in 2004. That season, when Berkman was just 28 years old, he made corrections and ended up with one of the best stat lines of his career. Now 33, he still has the ability to correct his 2009 season, but career highs in strikeouts often signal the beginning of the end. Owners will have to hope this is just a career-low april for the otherwise slugging first baseman, because you're not going to get fair compensation by trading him away now.

Soria throws

Royals closer Joakim Soria threw a light session on Sunday as he tries to get back from recent shoulder woes. There's no definite schedule for his return, although Soria is not on the DL.

Fantasy Impact: He should be benched until Kansas City gives him the go-head. Shoulder troubles are not that uncommon in April, but this is a touch worrisome for a young pitcher who's logged a lot of innings in his relief role the past two seasons.

Jacoby jacks home

The good Jacoby Ellsbury showed up Sunday night against the Yankees. The Red Sox speedy center fielder reached twice and stole a pair of bases -- including home plate -- in a 4-1 sweep-sealing victory. Ellsbury has been plagued by inconsistency this season, but his recent hot streak has him hitting .289.

Fantasy Impact: Fantasy owners might have to be resigned to the fact that Ellsbury may never shake his streaky nature. He suffered through a massive slump at the plate and on the bases in 2008, and just 10 days ago he was hitting .194. Ellsbury is up to 10 steals already in 2009, so it's hard to keep him out of the lineup, especially now. Ride the wave. You might be benching him again shortly.

Shell-shocked Lindstrom gets night off

Marlins manager Freddie Gonzalez gave closer Matt Lindstrom the night off on Saturday. Gonzalez says he still has faith in his young right-hander despite his 38-pitch, seven-run ninth inning on Friday.

Gonzalez said he would be giving Lindstrom the day off Saturday because he threw 38 pitches in Friday's nightmare outing.

But there is a good chance if the Marlins have the lead late in Sunday's game, Lindstrom will be back out there. If he is, Lindstrom said, he will definitely take a different approach than the one he did Friday, when he waited until the fifth batter he faced to throw something other than his 96-mile-per-hour fastball.

''I know what I have to do now to have more success -- and that's mix my pitches better and stop getting behind hitters, giving them a hitter's count,'' said Lindstrom, whose ERA jumped to 10.80 from 1.50 after giving up seven earned runs in two-thirds of an inning Friday.

Fantasy Impact: You'll have to hope Lindstrom can bounce back. On Friday Lindstrom seemed to think this is the worst he'd ever pitched. We don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing. Only time moving forward will tell.

KC closer by committee

With Joakim Soria nursing a sore shoulder, Kansas City will turn to a closer-by-committee approach until their All-Star reliever can return in three to five days. Soria had an MRI that came back negative.

Bombs away for Branyan... for now

Russell Branyan continues to be one of the most annoying players in fantasy baseball history. The Mariners first baseman homered in the first inning of tonight's victory over the Angels, giving him four long balls on the season. He finished with a 3-5 night with two runs scored and four RBI.

Branyan seems to have one hot streak in him every season, and when it comes, it's insane. He's hitting .341 through 12 games in 2009. This streak, however, just like all the rest, is sure to come to an end.

Fantasy Impact: Branyan's played eight stints with six different teams over five seasons. He hasn't collected 200 at bats since 2005, and he's 33 this season. Having never held down a first base job, it's hard to believe he'll keep things up for an entire season. Branyan owns a .231 career bating average and strikes out a ton. He's ownable while he's red hot but not at all once he cools off.

Webb of misfortune

Brandon Webb will not pitch for at least six more weeks due to what is considered a strained muscle in the back of his throwing shoulder.

Fantasy Impact: This is about as bad as the news could get for Webb. Nobody expected him to require surgery after a negative MRI on the shoulder, but he hasn't thrown since opening day, and now he's gone until at least June. Yusmeiro Petit will start in his absence for the time being.

Cubs losing their legs

Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez left in the fifth inning in St. Louis with a leg problem. Ramirez strained his left calf running the bases.

Then in the bottom of the eighth an erratic Carlos Marmol seemed to plant awkwardly while delivering a pitch and also had to leave. Marmol left under his own power and looked more frustrated than he did in pain.

Cooked quickly

Colorado starter Aaron Cook continues to struggle out of the gate. For the third time in four starts, Cook gives up his first run in the first inning. The Dodgers scored two and had the bases loaded before Cook even got the first out. He stranded those runners on a couple of come-backers to the mound, the second of which he turned into a 1-2-3 double play. To his credit Cook got through the first on just 19 pitches. If he can find his stuff the Rockies offense might get him back in the game.

Cook's issues stem from a problem with his delivery, which has flattened out his sinker.

Fantasy Impact: Cook made the All-Star Game last year thanks to his sinker. It's one of the best in the game when it's right, but it's nowhere closer to where he needs it to be. Until he finds the pitch again, Cook is just an also ran in terms of fantasy play.

Mouth peace

Mouth guards are finding their way into Major League Baseball. The mouth pieces aren't necessarily designed to protect players' teeth as much as they are supposed to actually improve blood-flow to the brain and improve performance. Eric Byrnes and Dustin Pedroia are a couple of players already giving the mouth guard a try.

The Pure Power Mouthguard, which is what Byrnes wears, was developed by Anil Makkar, a Nova Scotia-based dentist who has studied neuromuscular dentistry. He told the Canadian Press last October that the mouthguard doesn't increase strength, but that it can unlock an athlete's potential by enhancing strength, balance, endurance and oxygen flow.

"The jaw joint is actually the focus of power in the body because that is the most used joint in the whole body," Makkar said. "So what we're basically doing is trying to find the most comfortable position of that lower jaw. ... It relaxes all the muscles in the face and allows you (to) use more of your upper and lower body strength."

Harang hangs up the Cubs

Aramis Ramirez hit a line drive just inches over his head and Carlos Zambrano's broken bat missed him by just a couple of feet, but otherwise Aaron Harang enjoyed a great day at Wrigley Field. I was there to see him throw seven solid innings on seven-hit baseball. With the wind blowing out to left, Harang kept the ball down. He struck out just two batters, but did not allow an earned run, lowering his ERA to 2.00. Harang improves to 2-2 after a 7-1 Reds win.Harang winds in the sixth inning.
Harang looks in against Micah Hoffpauir on a perfect day for baseball at Wrigley.

Fantasy Impact: Harang proved to be one of the bigger disappointments last season, recording 17 losses. He's well on his way to righting the ship in 2009. We expect a continued return to past form - double-digit wins and No. 2 starter value in fantasy baseball.

Fast Bobby

Bobby Abreu leads the majors in stolen bases after recording his eighth of the season Thursday night. Abreu stole 40 bases back in 2004.

Fantasy Impact: A member of the Angels now, we should expect this sort of thing from Abreu, who is on pace to shatter his career high in steals, even at the age of 34. Mike Scioscia might be the most aggressive manager out there, so Abreu should get plenty of green lights.

Abreu is a better speed guy than a power hitter as evidenced by his 261 career stolen bases compared to his 198 home runs. His fast start on the base paths leads us to believe 40 more steals are on the horizon in 2009.

Zito shines

Barry Zito made the rare outstanding start, striking out five, walking nobody and yielding six hits over seven innings of shutout work. He didn't get a win, because Padres starter Chris Young matched him with seven shutout innings, but the Giants do win, 1-0 in ten.

Fantasy Impact: We don't trust Barry Zito until he mixes in more than one or two of these for every four or five duds. He's a back-of-the-fantasy-rotation type at best.

Sabathia scuffles, but no cause for concern

CC Sabathia continues to mix good and bad starts in 2009. The Yankees ace threw 112 pitches, just half of them for strikes, without getting through the seventh inning against the A's. He walked four, gave up six hits and a three-run homer to Kurt Suzuki. Sabathia's six earned runs in 6 2/3 innings is messy at best, although he avoided a loss as the Yankees rallied to tie and won the game in 14 innings, 9-7.

Fantasy Impact: This is not the first time Sabathia has struggled. While his ERA ballooned to 4.81, Sabathia has just a 3.65 lifetime ERA. Last season's incredible run with the Brewers, in which he won 11 times in 17 outings while posting a 1.65 ERA, was the best stretch of his career. Those stunning numbers probably had some to do with Sabathia facing a league of hitters that had rarely or never faced him before.

Now he's back in the A.L. with DHs and opponents who know him well. We're going to expect that ERA to return to the mid-threes this year. Sabathia is just one good start away from accomplishing that.

Haren needs some help

Dan Haren now has three runs of support through four starts in 2009. Tuesday he got two of those three, and it proved plenty as Haren shutout the Colorado Rockies for seven innings on the way to a 2-0 Diamondbacks win. Haren struck out nine and walked two while giving up just six hits. His ERA falls to 1.38.

Fantasy Impact: Last year we touted Haren as a fantasy ace who didn't get the respect he deserved. Now, like Matt Cain, he's not getting the run support. Haren improved his record to 1-3, so the Diamondbacks offense hurt Haren owners in two potential fantasy categories. It's not Haren's fault, although you're saddled with his support as long as he's in Arizona. We'll call him a frontline ace, but not an ideal number one like Tim Lincecum or Johan Santana.

Hard to hit Harden

Rich Harden continues to dominate this season, striking out eight over six innings in a 7-2 victory over Cincinnati. Baseball Musings points out that Harden has allowed just 30 of the 64 batters he's faced to put the ball in play. He walks too many batters and builds up a high pitch count rarely working into the seventh inning, as he failed to do again on Tuesday.

That puts a lot of pressure on the Cubs bullpen, which looks very mediocre at this point of the season.

Fantasy Impact: It's the same story for Harden: great pitcher with bad luck. He's a number three starter in fantasy with the upside of a number one and the downside of an injury-risk crash. We wouldn't invest too much in him, but we'd still like him on our roster.

Mulder interest

Oft-injured free agent pitcher Mark Mulder is getting interest from several MLB clubs, but not from the pitching-strapped Angels. The Dodgers, A's and Nationals seem most interested at this time.

Miguel Cabrera deal unlikely

Tom Fornelli over at Fanhouse points out that even if the Tigers want to trade Miguel Cabrera's huge salary away this season, dealing him might cost them even more money.

Cabrera is in the second year of a $153-million contract that pays him $15 million this year.

Putting up for Dukes

Elijah Dukes can't catch a break. Even when he does good, he gets in trouble. Somebody tell the Washington Nationals how to run a baseball team, please. Kudos to the little leaguers for the nice gesture to pay Dukes' fine.

Cuban Missle's slow start

Alexei Ramirez went 2-4 with a stolen basen Tuesday in Baltimore, raising his paltry average to .159 in 44 at bats. He's scuffling along, but some believe a night like Tuesday is the kind of performance that will get him started.

Fantasy Impact: Ramirez started woefully slow in 2008, leading some to believe the eventual A.L. Rookie of the Year runner-up was a mistake signing by the White Sox. Ramirez hit just .138 in 29 April at bats last year. After 90 at bats in 2008, Ramirez improved to .234. He batted .295 in May. We're forecasting gradual improvement as the weather heats up.

Bergesen strong in first start

Spitting Seeds' concerns regarding Orioles rookie starter Brad Bergesen waned a bit after seeing him pitch well Tuesday night for his first major league win. The 23-year-old commands incredible stuff, pitches that bend and dip violently on their way to home plate. Imagine whiffle balls darting and dodging White Sox bats and you get the picture.

Fantasy Impact: Bergesen worked into the sixth, going 5 2/3 innings and striking out four. He's not a strikeout pitcher, according to his minor league stats. He is, however, very poised on the mound as he worked through some difficult circumstances to beat Chicago, 10-3.

We'd recommend taking a flier on him. Actually, we believe a bit more in Baltimore's minor league pitcher of the year. We think Bergesen can stick in the majors. Add him to your pitching staff if you can, and reap the benefits of major league teams having never seen him before.

Broken bat injures ump

Umpire Kerwin Danley was struck on the right side of the head when Hank Blalock's bat shattered during a fifth-inning at bat. Danley would leave the game on a stretcher.

While maple bats have come under scrutiny in the past year due to their seemingly high rate of shattering, Blalock was using an ash bat.

Darn it, Doumit

Ryan Doumit's fractured wrist will keep him out at least eight weeks and up to ten.

Fantasy Impact: This is a bad time for a bad break. Doumit is one of the few major producers at catcher, and now that we're a couple of weeks into the season many of the solid waiver options are off the board.

Some suggestions on catchers you might be able to catch on waivers:

Kelly Shoppach - The Indians backstop is getting part-time at bats
Dioner Navarro - He hit .295 in 2008 and is availble in half of Yahoo! leagues
Nick Hundley - Off to a great start, but not a top prospect
Gerald Laird - Steady and boring
John Buck - Hot start but shares time with Miguel Olivo
Miguel Olivo - See John Buck

Isringhausen rehabbing

Jason Isringhausen is on a rehab stint, and the first outing went well. Isringhausen will contribute to a crowded Rays bullpen upon his arrival in Tampa. Troy Percival, the current closer, is under pressure from setup men Grant Balfour and Dan Wheeler. All four pitchers can end up earning saves.

Fantasy Impact: When he gets back to the majors, Isringhausen will be a setup man at best. He certainly maintains upside as a possible closer down the road but is best left on the waiver wire for now.

A-Rod getting closer

A-Rod says he feels good as he continues to progress with fielding drills in his rehab work. He still hasn't run the bases yet.

Bergesen debuts Monday night

Paul White of USA Today takes a look at prospects cracking the surface in MLB. Brad Bergesen makes his debut for the Orioles tonight against the White Sox. Bergesen, the Orioles minor league pitcher of the year, needs to be deceptive to get batters out.

Fantasy Impact: Bergesen went 15-6 with a 3.22 ERA in Double-A last year, but he only struck out 72 batters in 148 innings. He's an interesting prospect, but not necessarily a guy you'd expect to dominate in the big leagues.

Take a flier if you can, but this is fairly high risk-reward.

Own-able Ohlendorf

Ross Ohlendorf began to make a name for himself by two-hitting the Florida Marlins for seven innings Monday night. Ohlendorf, who wrote his thesis on the value of signing bonuses while at Princeton, has a nice makeup. He's known as a minor league innings-eater, which might translate well to the big leagues.

Fantasy Impact: It's hard to say many ace-like performances lie ahead, but if you're hurting for starting pitching in your fantasy league, Ohlendorf is quite possibly worth the risk. He's not likely to post a ton of victories, but if the big right hander can keep his ERA in the fours and continue to work a nice K/BB rate, he's worth a pickup as a low-end starting option at this time.

Nationals trust Hanrahan

Joel Hanrahan received a vote of confidence from manager Manny Acta on Monday, who said Hanrahan is firmly entrenched as the team's closer despite saving just one game in three chances. Acta called up three middle relievers on Sunday, including saves candidate Garrett Mock, but stressed that Hanrahan still owns the job of closer.

Acta said, Hanrahan is not on a short leash.

"No, not at all," Acta said. "There's no such thing as a short leash for two blown saves. I think even the great Mariano Rivera has blown saves back-to-back in the past."

Joe Beimel is still considered the team's setup man, so the young guns will fall in line somewhere between the day's starter and the seventh inning.

Fantasy Impact: Hanrahan is not our idea of a stable closer, but if he's getting the nod from his manager, it's his role to lose. Consider him a low end option that won't get many chances due to the Nationals losing ways.

Tale of two pitchers

Dallas Braden and Ricky Romero formed one solid pitchers duel on Sunday in Toronto. A second-inning single by Lyle Overbay knocked in the only run against Braden, who worked 7 1/3 innings, giving up eight total base runners.

Romero looked even tougher, yielding six base runners through seven innings and striking out five. The Jays win behind their potentially emergent ace, 1-0.

Adam Jones tigthens up

Baltimore center fielder Adam Jones looked destined for a breakout 2009 season. Hitting .371 through a couple weeks of his second professional season will turn heads. In today's Orioles-Red Sox game, however, Jones experienced tightness in his hamstring and had to leave the game.

Fantasy Impact: Anyone who's ever owned Eric Byrnes will tell you hamstring injuries are serious matters. They can turn a star-studded fantasy season into a star-crossed one. Jones is best sat for the Orioles next game.

McCann can't see so good

Brian McCann, suffering with blurry vision in one eye even after Lasik surgery, will see a specialist regarding the issue.

“Either my eyesight’s changed, or I have a dry spot in my eye,” said McCann, mired in a 1-for-20 slump that has dropped his average to .200. “I tried wearing contacts for a week, and it didn’t work. Now I’ve got some antibiotic drops, and hopefully that will clear it up.”

If his vision has changed, he probably would have another Lasik procedure. That could require him to miss games and possibly go on the 15-day disabled list. He saw an eye doctor in Atlanta last week, but tests were inconclusive.

Fantasy Impact: McCann clobbered a couple of home runs in the opening series, but since then he's been pedestrian as a fantasy player. Put him on the pine until this issue clears up.

Mauer return set for May 1

The Twins put Joe Mauer on a rehab schedule for playing games, but it sounds like it will be at least a couple of weeks in the minors barring setbacks before the team's backstop can return to the majors.

The Twins want Mauer to get about 50 at-bats and 10 games, with at least half of those as the catcher.

Manager Ron Gardenhire said Sunday the final part of the plan is to put Mauer behind the plate for consecutive games to test his strength and stamina before activating him from the disabled list.

If Mauer stays on schedule, he's on track to rejoin the Twins for their May 1 game at home against the Kansas City Royals.

Fantasy Impact: Another two weeks shouldn't kill fantasy owners. Mauer is no messiah in fantasy baseball, however, as his batting average is his greatest plus. Mauer is more of a good complementary type who won't hurt you than he is a fantasy star.

Guerrero DL stint good for Wood?

As expected, Vlad Guerrero hit the disabled list Friday with a torn pectoral muscle and will miss at least a month. Speculation has Brandon Wood the likely call-up. His power bat might fit nicely in the middle-end of the Angels lineup.

Fantasy Impact: Guerrero's not a factor for at least a month or beyond. DL him asap. Wood looks like the obvious call-up candidate with his power abilities. He strikes out a ton, however, so in leagues that penalize whiffs, you might have second thoughts.

Sheffield's 500th

Gary Sheffield hit his 500th home run Friday night in a 5-4 Mets win over San Diego. Sheffield pinch hit in the seventh inning, his fifth at bat and first hit of the season. He's the 25th major leaguer to hit 25 home runs.

Fantasy Impact: Mets Manager Jerry Manuel says he wants Sheffield in shape to play the outfield, and that time needs to come sooner rather than later for fantasy owners. For now, Sheffield is nothing more than a one at bat wonder each and every day.

Webb's successful game of catch

After the most anticipated game of catch in the world Friday, April 17th, Brandon Webb said his arm is feeling better.

They threw for about 10 minutes, with manager Bob Melvin and pitching coach Bryan Price watching, but Webb said he needed almost no time to realize how much better he was feeling.

"I was a little apprehensive letting it go right off the bat, but as soon as I started throwing I was like, 'This feels totally different from what it did (before),' " he said.

Fantasy Impact: This is obviously one small step for Webb in the recovery process. He's going to have to clear a couple more hurdles before he even considers pitching in a game again.

Kudos to Kubel on cycle

Jason Kubel's grand slam capped off a cycle against the Angels and a spectacular night for the Twins outfielder. Kubel goes 4-5 with five RBI and two runs in a 10-8 Twins win at the Metrodome.

Fantasy Impact: Kubel is considered part of a platoon in the Twins outfield with Delmon Young, and he's earning quite a few of the at bats. He's good for maybe 450 this season, but if he continues to break out, Kubel will become a full-fledged starter.

Benching Bonifacio

After he struck out seven times in 10 at bats, the Florida Marlins kept Emilio Bonifacio out of the starting lineup Friday night. They're trying to get the youngster to change his approach at the plate. Namely, chasing high fastballs.

Fantasy Impact: Certainly Bonifacio's amazing breakout to start the season was going to cool considerably at some point this season, but to see him go from such a peak to such a valley smacks of a youthful player still becoming accustomed to an every day role as a big leaguer. He'll continue to produce and sputter in waves this season. You'll have to hope for more periods of production than otherwise.

Downs or Frasor after Ryan?

Athlon Sports releases its latest on closer roles up for grabs, expecting Manny Corpas to eventually take over for Huston Street and Jason Frasor potentially winning the Blue Jays job from B.J. Ryan.

For more on closers, see 2009 MLB closers.

Fantasy Impact: There's really no information available on Frasor wresting the job from Ryan or even winning it over setup man Scott Downs, whom Cito Gaston himself considered Ryan's biggest challenger at the end of the spring. The only reason Frasor earned a save this season was he bailed out Ryan in a game against the Indians when Downs had already been used.

Frasor has started using a split-finger pitch this season with solid results. So, while it is possible that Frasor has the stuff to close games, it isn't necessarily likely that he will be the first reliever off the bench when Ryan falters. We'll consider Downs the favorite to see opportunities while Frasor is possibly choice 1A.

The left-handed Maddux?

There's something special about White Sox starter John Danks. Danks threw six innings of two-hit baseball in Tampa Thursday night, striking out eight while giving up a single run. He earned his first win of 2009, a 3-2 nail-biter over the Rays.

At the age of 24, Danks is growing into a legitimate MLB pitcher. He won't wow anyone with his stuff, which is more than adequate but still not overwhelming. His numbers, however, jump off the page in Greg Maddux-like fashion. Take a look at the pitchers' first two seasons in the majors. The comparison is eerie.

2007 JD -- 6-13 ERA: 5.50 IP: 139.0 H: 160 HR: 28 BB: 54 K: 109 WHIP: 1.540
1987 GM -- 6-14 ERA: 5.61 IP: 155.2 H: 181 HR: 17 BB: 74 K: 101 WHIP: 1.638

2008 JD -- 12-9 ERA: 3.32 IP: 195.0 H: 182 HR: 15 BB: 57 K: 159 WHIP: 1.226
1988 GM -- 18-8 ERA: 3.18 IP: 249.0 H: 230 HR: 13 BB: 81 K: 140 WHIP: 1.249

Their rookie seasons are near-mirror images of each other. Danks gave up more home runs while Maddux kept the ball in the yard but gave up more base runners. Year two shows some separation in the numbers as Maddux began his winning ways and threw more innings, but it's not that far off. Danks limited base runners in Maddux-like fashion, and he continued to use his above-average pitches to strike out more batters.

It's hard to draw the conclusion that Danks will continue his meteoric rise as one of the top young arms in baseball based on this comparison to Maddux. The Hall of Famer eventually produced off-the-charts stats, like 20 BB and a 0.946 WHIP in 1997. He did win 355 games for a reason: he averaged 16 wins over his 23 seasons.

Danks is behind a year age-wise, and he's eight wins behind Maddux through two full seasons in the big leagues. He's got the numbers to expect great things ahead, and while a Greg Maddux comparison is not fair to almost any pitcher, the first two years are comparable for John Danks. Maddux entered the big leagues as a young 20-year-old with considerable upside, but his first season in Chicago left some with tempered expectations. Danks is the same type of high-end prospect who met with limited success when he first cracked the surface. Since then, he's been brilliant.

Valverde hurt?

LaTroy Hawkins worked the ninth inning of the Astros' 6-3 victory at Pittsburgh. Both Rotoworld.com and The Sporting News worry that Valverde may have some sort of arm problem. He only threw 16 pitches the night before in a non-save situation.

Fantasy Impact: If Valverde is hurt, Hawkins hasn't had a whole lot of success as a closer.

Who's your Padres?

Break up San Diego, the Padres can't be beaten. Despite a ho-hum pitching performance from Jake Peavy, San Diego knocked around Mets starter John Maine for six runs on seven hits in just five innings. Heath Bell earned his fifth save in five chances and still hasn't allowed a run. 6-5 is the final.

Second-year slow-starter Chase Headley powered the Padres with four hits in four at bats and three RBI. San Diego is 7-3.

Fantasy Impact: Peavy's WHIP of 2.000 in this one was very disappointing, and he only lasted five innings. Peavy still earns his second win. He's fairly solid in his role as a fantasy ace.

Headley brought his average back up to .256. He's a high-end prospect, and if he can overcome the spacious alleys of Petco Park, he might be able to have a breakout season in 2009.

Martis leads Nats to first win

Washington is finally a winner. Behind a solid outing from rookie starter Shairon Martis, the Nationals pounded out eight runs on 13 hits to beat Joe Blanton and the Phillies, 8-2. Washington improves to 1-7 while dropping the Phils to 4-4.

Adam Dunn, Josh Willingham, Elijah Dukes and Alberto Gonzalez all went deep for the Nats, and the bullpen tossed 2 2/3 innings of no-hit ball.

Fantasy Impact: Martis' name was bantered about in fantasy circles this preseason. He put together fairly good numbers in the minors, but walks have been his biggest problem. He only walked two on this night, and if he can keep the ball in the zone, Martis might be a modest sleeper candidate pitching for a bad team.

Halladay outduels Liriano

Francisco Liriano pitched well for the first time this season, but the Twins lefty still lost to the Blue Jays' Roy Halladay, 9-2. While Liriano was busy pitching six strong innings, giving up one run with six strikeouts, Hallady was besting him in nearly every category. Halladay worked seven innings and struck out eight. He picks up his third win. Liriano suffers his third loss.

Toronto, which sent eight batters to the plate hitting better than .300, is now a surprising 8-3. They beat up on the Twins bullpen.

Fantasy Impact: Liriano's effort is a serious relief for owners wondering when he'd lower his lofty ERA. It's down to 5.09 now, which is at least entering respectability.

Halladay is an ace who many allowed to slide in fantasy drafts due to his unlikeliness to win with the Blue Jays. He's 3-0 and can make it halfway to ten before the end of the month.

Cards bats, not Wainwright, beat Cubs

Despite the loss of Chris Carpenter, the Cardinals continue to make one of the best starts in the majors. With a 7-4 win over the Cubs, St. Louis improves to 8-3 on the year.

They got it done with hitting on Thursday with Chris Duncan, Khalil Greene and Brian Barden all going deep. Then again, the Cardinals were facing Cubs fifth starter Sean Marshall while the Cubs dealt with St. Louis ace Adam Wainwright.

Fantay Impact: Wainwright actually didn't pitch very well, giving up four runs in six innings while still earning a win. He's giving up a lot of base runners but keeping them from scoring. He'll need to right that ship if he wants to maintain a 3.31 ERA.

Duncan is hitting .389, and Tony La Russa's faith in him against lefties like Marshall is paying off. He picked up three hits today in four at bats.

Guerrero to visit Yocum

Injuries continue to mount in the second full week of the season. Vlad Guerrero, struggling with a bothersome pectoral muscle, is leaving the Angels to take a visit to Dr. Lewis Yocum.

“I want to get back to playing right field,” he said in the clubhouse through an interpreter. “The way I am swinging the bat has nothing to do with this. … I just haven’t gotten into the swing of things.”

He said he first felt discomfort during an exhibition against the Dodgers four days before opening day.

“It progressed to the point that I can’t play the field, and I want to take care of it,” he said.

Asked if the Angels would be OK using Guerrero indefinitely as a DH only, Scioscia said, “We’re going to have to be.

“Obviously (it’s about) what Vlad brings to our team, and the lion’s share of what he brings is hitting right in the middle of the lineup and swinging the bat,” the manager said. “And if we can get that, it goes a long way to building an offense.

“We’ll take it one step at a time. If it’s something where he’s limited to that role, we obviously have enough (outfield) depth to work around that.”

Fantasy Impact: Typically a visit to Dr. Yocum means something serious, but that's with shoulder problems. A strained pec, which Vladdy says doesn't affect his swing, doesn't sound like as big a problem. Then again, Guerrero is leaving the team to make this visit, signaling a potential escalating problem. If the injury doesn't bother his swing, and he can DH all season long, why does he need to take time off to see Yocum?

We're expecting Guerrero to miss some significant time -- maybe as much as a 15-day disabled list stint. Maybe more.

Alex Gordon disabled

Alex Gordon returned from his right hip problem only to suffer further trouble with the injury. He's going on the disabled list with a cartilage tear, and the injury requires surgery. There's no word on his eventual return.

***Update -- 8:39 p.m. CST -- Gordon tore the hip labrum, and he's visiting the same Vail, Colorado doctor who performed surgery on Alex Rodriguez.

Fantasy Impact: Mike Aviles and Mark Teahen played some third with Gordon on the shelf. We'll assume Teahen takes over full-time until Gordon can return. With surgery you have to expect he'll miss at least a couple of months. That's territory for a potential release in fantasy play as Gordon hasn't produced at all this season.

Ross is boss for a day

Cody Ross finally found his power stroke in Atlanta. Ross poked his first home run of the 2009 season, going 3-3 with 4 RBI to push Florida past Atlanta. He's hitting .207 this season after batting .260 with 22 home runs in 2008.

Fantasy Impact: Ross is a full-time starter, but he's a lower-end option in fantasy play. His batting average isn't impressive, he doesn't run and he hits near the bottom of the Florida order. That means his run and RBI totals won't compare to middle-of-the order types at his position. Ross strikes out about a quarter of the time, and he produced a paltry .313 OBP in 2008. He's a stopgap option if one of your slugging starters goes down.

Aramis back, but is the back bad?

Aramis Ramirez returned to the Cubs lineup after back stiffness kept him out of a pair of games against Colorado. During his first at bat, Cubs announcer Len Kasper said Ramirez's back problems actually lingered throughout the spring.

Fantasy Impact: It's not the best news when one of the top five players at a position is dealing with a potentially chronic ailment. If Ramirez continues to miss starts here and there, he becomes an injury-risk starter whose value decreases. We still forecast Ramirez right behind A-Rod, David Wright, Evan Longoria and Miguel Cabrera (who still has eligibility this season) at third. Chipper Jones and Garrett Atkins are his primary competitors as potential top-five players at the hot corner.

Ballpark factor in fantasy baseball

Eric Walker takes a look at the difficulty of analyzing ballpark data and how statistics struggle to help make definite conclusions on the nature of a baseball stadium.

I appreciate Walker's analysis that analysis is inherently flawed. I've always believed that the players playing in the ballpark affect the statistics the park produces more than the stadium itself. Petco Park, for example, cannot escape the fact that the Padres will play in all 81 games she houses in a given year. To compare how Padre players perform at home vs. on the road is not necessarily going to give you good control data to make any conclusions, either. Some players play better on the road than at home in general. Some players play better at night than in day games. Some players randomly produce differently in different places from year to year.

Hoffman throws off mound; closer by committee in Milwaukee?

Trevor Hoffman threw off a mound on Wednesday, experiencing no issues with the oblique injury that sidelined him late in spring training.

"It's good to be back on the slope," Hoffman said. "I didn't throw as many strikes as I would have liked, but I think the key was to come out of it pain-free."

Hoffman will throw off a mound again Saturday in New York. The next step after that is to be determined, according to manager Ken Macha, but Hoffman indicated that he could join the Triple-A Nashville Sounds in Memphis as early as Tuesday to begin a Minor League rehabilitation assignment.

That means Hoffman is at least 10 days away from returning to the big leagues.

Fantasy Impact: The Brewers don't have a great option at closer after Hoffman. They need him back. Manager Ken Macha suggested that a few Brewers relievers might get chances to close games alongside de facto closer Carlos Villanueva, who has struggled in the role. Macha mentioned Todd Coffey, Seth McClung and Mark DiFelice as pitchers throwing better than Villanueva right now.

Perez to push for closer role in STL

The St. Louis Cardinals have the most interesting bullpen in baseball. With the call-up of Chris Perez, St. Louis has three options for saves. Perez will battle Jason Motte and Ryan Franklin for the closer role while Kyle McClellan likely slides into the rotation in place of the injured Chris Carpenter.

Fantasy Impact: Get. Perez. Now. He's only 23, but he can bring the heat. Perez is the sexiest option between the three. Hold your breath and hope he can string together a few solid outings to inherit the role full-time. You'll be glad you took a chance on the future relief star.

Another pothole for Street

Huston Street entered a non-save situation against the Cubs in the ninth inning and turned the game into a save situation for Jason Grilli. Street offered up a home run to Derrek Lee and two more base runners before Grilli entered to close it out. Manager Clint Hurdle said he made the move to "put the game away." Not exactly a ringing endorsement for his closer.

"I'll be fine," Street said. "They're not all going to fall in. The truth is, when we win and I have a bad outing, I don't really care. I do care because my team needs me to start having good outings, but I'm going to have good outings."

Fantasy Impact: Opponents are hitting .533 against Street. Manny Corpas, available to pitch in the ninth, was not Hurdle's choice. The Rockies have issues at the back end of the bullpen that need to be sorted out. Street is the de facto closer until his problems push Corpas, or perhaps Grilli, into the fold.

Seattle resurrections

Ichiro made his return to the Great Northwest Wednesday night after a bleeding ulcer had sidelined Japan's World Baseball Classic hero. He didn't disappoint in his first game back, going 2-5 with a grand slam and a stolen base as the Mariners whip the Angels, 11-3.

Ken Griffey Jr. also homered, lifting No. 613 of his career, his 400th as a Mariner.

Picking up his second win in the game was starter Jarrod Washburn, who looks like he's found something in that new sinker. Washburn cruised until giving up a two-run homer to Torii Hunter in the fourth, and that was it. He's 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA.

Fantasy Impact: Ichiro returns to his place as one of the premier average/speed threats in all of baseball. He's a starter in every fantasy baseball format.

Washburn is a sleeper for a rebound season. He hasn't made much of a fantasy impact since 2005, and even that year he only finished 8-8. With a new pitch and a 2-0 start on a 7-2 Mariners team you should ride the wave while it lasts.

Rasmus starts, Ludwick swats

Don't look now, but Colby Rasmus is playing every day for the St. Louis Cardinals. Rasmus started for fourth straight game, hit a run-scoring double and scored two runs. The Cardinals cruise past Arizona, 12-7, with Ryan Ludwick swatting his third home run.

Fantasy Impact: A 2008 All-Star, Ludwick is the only Redbird outfielder with an everyday job. Rasmus started in center field in place of Rick Ankiel. In a crowded Cardinals outfield that could see Rasmus, Ankiel and Chris Duncan platoon for one another all season, Rasmus likely does not command enough fantasy value to start at this time. He's even available on a number of waiver wires, which is surprising given his pedigree as a 22-year-old with major upside. Take a flier soon, or you might be disappointed this one got away.

Can't hit Hampton

Astros starter Mike Hampton looked strong in a 4-1 win at Pittsburgh. Hampton allowed just four hits over six innings and struck out eight. He's 1-1 on the year.

Fantasy Impact: Tough to give advice on Hampton. Flip a coin -- heads, you pick him up off the waiver wire; tails, you don't. He's really an unknown at this point of his career having thrown 147 1/3 innings since 2005. He's 37 this year, and he hasn't put together a great season of pitching since 1999. That's ten years ago. Still, if your staff is hurting for a wild card, call us crazy, but Hampton might fill a void. The Astros are hoping so.

Kinsler cycle

Ian Kinsler's hot start just went supernova. The Rangers' second baseman goes 6-6 and hits for the cycle in a 19-6 pasting of Baltimore. Kinsler is now hitting .474 with three homers.

Fantasy Impact: There are those who consider Kinsler to be the best second sacker in all of baseball. We'll take Chase Utley for his consistency and power numbers, although Kinsler and Brandon Phillips play close seconds (no pun intended). If you think Utley was an injury risk at the start of the year due to his recovery from hip surgery, consider that Kinsler has never played more than 130 games in a single season.

The arrival of Clayton Kershaw

Clayton Kershaw may have made his major league debut in 2008, but tonight the young Dodger pitcher looked like a major league ace for the first time in his career. With 13 strikeouts in seven innings of work, Kershaw dominated the Giants with his fastball. The left-hander looked unhitable -- and he was, save for a solo homer by Bengie Molina in the second.

Fantasy Impact: Kershaw left with a 2-1 lead and watched Aaron Rowand ruin his win with a 3-run homer in the eighth off of Hong-Chih Kuo. Such is life in the big leagues. Kershaw's ERA dropped to 1.50. His days of inconsistencies are probably not fully in the rear-view mirror just yet, but you can expect sparkling performances such as this to be sprinkled in just as often.

Strong-armed Armando

Tigers second-year pitcher Armando Galarraga continues his progression as a major leaguer. Galarraga's fine 2008, in which he recorded 13 wins and a 3.73 ERA, looks to be eclipsed if you believe in his hot start is for real.

Galarraga has allowed just one run in two starts and has struck out 12 batters in 13 1/3 innings. Today he worked 6 1/3 shutout innings to beat the White Sox, 9-0.

Fantasy Impact: Don't confuse Galarraga with a fantasy ace just yet. He walks three batters per nine innings, which is pretty good but not ideal, and he served up 28 home runs in less than 180 innings in 2008. He does limit hits, and if those strikeout numbers stay up he's a possible number two or three in your rotation for the year. Not too shabby, considering you probably drafted him as your number four.

Foxy stretch at Wrigley

Michael J. Fox sang the seventh-inning stretch at Wrigley today. He looks pretty good and sounded equally strong singing from the booth.

Bad start

The Baseball Analysts take a look at Pythagorean win-loss and decide the Washington Nationals aren't necessarily an awful 0-7. They're more like a really bad 2-5.

Don't miss Swish

Nick Swisher's next assignment with the Yankees won't be at pitcher. He's likely the Yankees' starter in right field now that Xavier Nady's elbow issue could be season-ending.

Fantasy Impact: Nady's value obviously plummets with the news he could miss all of '09. Swisher is intriguing, to say the least. He's a streaky hitter who's belted 35 homers in a single major league season, but he's also a .246 career hitter who rolled out a .219/.332/.410 line in 2009. If he's on the waiver wire, nab him as a fourth outfielder. A good Yankee lineup around Swisher, coupled with a short porch in right at New Yankee Stadium could provide for some fantasy help.

Carpenter disabled

The Cardinals place Chris Carpenter on the disabled list after straining his ribcage in Arizona Wednesday night. He's out at least a month.

Fantasy Impact: Always the danger with Carpenter, injuries seem to be getting the better of him these days. This is his ninth trip to the disabled list. If you drafted him, you new injury risk was a concern. This qualifies as a bad injury, but not quite a devastating one. Here's hoping you took him late, when you already rounded out your staff. Carpenter will remain an injury-risk sleeper for the second half of the season.

Hard-luck Harden

Rich Harden is one of those guys who can't seem to fully harness his incredible gift of throwing a baseball. The Cubs starter lasted just three innings against Colorado on Wednesday, needing 92 pitches to record nine outs. He struck out eight Rockies batters but walked four. Harden gave up four runs, bringing his ERA up to 5.00. He left with a 4-0 Rockies lead.

Fantasy Impact: In his last 10 starts, Harden pitched out of the fifth inning just five times. He's no better than a five or six inning guy, but he's one of the best in baseball in terms of stuff. This leaves fantasy owners in a quandry. Do you treat Harden as an ace who can win big with the Cubs, or do you consider Harden an also-ran who will blow you away numbers-wise ever third or fourth start? The obvious answer is somewhere in between. Harden makes for a dynamic third starter, and upside is there now that he's on a consistently winning team. He will miss a few starts, however, and he's more likely to have success going deep into games against teams with free swingers.

Contreras can't get through six

Hot and cold Jose Contreras looked like he was putting together one of his good starts in Detroit. Through four innings in Detroit Contreras allowed just three base runners, one of them on his own fielding error. The Tigers got two in the fourth of a Placido Polanco double. Miguel Cabrera homered in the sixth, and after Contreras exited three batters later, Clayton Richard allowed another two runs, one of them charged to Contreras.

Contreras' line: 5.1 IP, 5H 5R, 4ER, 2 BB, 4K

Fantasy Impact: Those aren't terrible numbers, and Richard didn't help matters much. But Contreras doesn't help fantasy owners, either. Not right now, anyway. He's bound to find his good stuff at some point this season, but the veteran owns a 6.97 ERA through two starts. He's best left on the waiver wire at this time.

Matsuzaka disabled

Daisuke Matsuzaka hit the disabled list with "arm fatigue." File this one under W-B-C. He gave up five runs in one inning last night, growing his ERA to 12.79.

Fantasy Impact: Daisuke will miss a few starts going on the DL. If he "feels fine," hopefully this is only a minor setback.

Who's leading off?

The Chicago White Sox go with Brent Lillibridge as the leadoff man again following the minor injury to Chris Getz. Getz will be back at the top of the order again on Thursday when the Sox take on Tampa Bay.

That might last forever, however, with Scott Podsednik signed to a minor league deal after an injury to Dewayne Wise. The White Sox leadoff spot could eventually become Podsednik's.

Fantasy Impact: Podsednik batted just .253 in 2008 with the Rockies. He's a low-end option in fantasy play, and he's not even with the team at this time. Lillibridge remains a backup to Getz, who deserves a look at second base in deeper leagues.

Fans boycott MLB over steroids

A group of New Jersey fans is attempting to get steroids out of baseball by proposing an MLB boycott. You can check out their initiative here: www.baseballfansgiveback.com

Cubs' Bradley strains groin

Milton Bradley is expected to miss Monday's Cubs home opener after straining his groin Sunday in Milwaukee.

Fantasy Impact: If Bradley misses time, Kosuke Fukudome moves to right field while Reed Johnson and Joey Gathright patrol center. Johnson makes more of a fantasy impact than Gathright except for the steals category.

Diamondbacks bullpen roles change

Juan Gutierrez moves ahead of Jon Rauch as the Arizona Diamondbacks seventh inning setup man.

"Like we've done in the past, if someone is struggling a little bit we'll try to back them off and get them in some less prominent outings," Melvin said.

Gutierrez had looked sharp in his first appearance, retiring all four batters he faced on Tuesday, but he allowed three runs in an inning on Saturday.

Fantasy Impact: Gutierrez will be third in line for saves behid Chad Qualls and Tony Pena. That's not a big deal, although it confirms that Rauch is no longer in competition with Qualls or even Pena. He does not factor in as a saves candidate at this point.

Ellbury flawless again in center

Jacoby Ellsbury set the Boston Red Sox record for consecutive games without and error on Sunday with his 179th error-less game. Now, if the leadoff man could only get on base...

Gordon sidelined again Sunday

Royals third baseman Alex Gordon, substituted Saturday due to a sore hip, sat out Sunday for Mark Teahen. The Royals are calling the injury "day to day."

Come on, Lincecum

Tim Lincecum's struggles continued for a second start. The 2008 National League Cy Young winner struggled with three walks and ten hits allowed in a 6-1 drubbing by San Diego.

“Right now there’s a little more negatives on my side than usual,” Lincecum said. “I’ve just got to go down and take a look at what’s going on and figure something out.”

Chase Headley homered for the second straight day and Luis Rodriguez had two sacrifice flies for San Diego, which finished with 13 hits.

Lincecum had been dominant in his previous eight starts against the Padres, going 3-1 with a microscopic 0.95 ERA.

“He hasn’t gotten into his good groove yet,” San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy said. “His fastball command is not sharp and that’s what is hurting him. As good as he is, he really needs to do that.”

You have to wonder if Lincecum's illness this spring, coupled with mediocre spring stuff, is contributing to his slow start. The Giants' ace saw Padres right hander Chris Young work seven strong innings with seven strikeouts for his second win.

Slugging Soriano

Alfonso Soriano bashed his National-League-leading fourth home run into the night to leadoff the Cubs 8-5 win over Milwaukee at Miller Park. It's Soriano's second leadoff home run this season. He has just seven RBI, thanks to batting leadoff. MLB home run leader Evan Longoria (5 HR) owns 10 RBI.

Fantasy Impact: Soriano might be an ideal No. 5 hitter. He's got pop, and while his on base percentage lacks, he can steal a base once he gets on. That's an ideal type of player for the role in the National League, where a power guy can knock himself in or get himself from first to second in time for the lower order to bring him home before the pitcher's turn. Soriano desires to bat first, though, so his RBI numbers will continue to take a hit.

Glavine's shoulder situation

Braves fifth starter Tom Glavine experienced some shoulder issues in his final minor league tuneup. Could this open the door for phenom Tommy Hanson to make the Braves rotation?

Hanson struck out ten in 4 1/3 innings in his first Minor League outing.

Pitching late early

So much for early-season pitch counts. Cincinnati's Aaron Harang (108 pitches), Florida's Josh Johnson (113 pitches) and St. Louis' Kyle Lohse (112 pitches) all threw complete games on the season's first Sunday.

The Mariners' Erik Bedard (102 pitches) worked into the ninth before giving way to his bullpen in a 1-0 shutout of Oakland.

Angels they are not

The Red Sox and Angels saw three members of the Angels ejected during two bench-clearing incidents in Sunday's game. Torii Hunter is the only player ejected with fantasy value. Owners will need to compensate for a possible suspension. Angels reliever Just Speier, the other ejected player, has little fantasy value and should not be owned in most pleagues.

Webb disabled

Brandon Webb might have no structural damage in his right shoulder, but he's on the disabled list, anyway. The Diamondbacks' stopper will be out at least another ten days.

Steve Phillips on the Cubs

ESPN's Steve Phillips believes the Cubs closer situation is a battle that will eventually be won by Carlos Marmol. According to Philips, Marmol has the better stuff and is the better pitcher when compared with current Cubs closer Kevin Gregg. Phillips voiced his opinion numerous times on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball as Marmol pitched a perfect eighth and Gregg struggled through the ninth.

Phillips also had a bit of a run-in with Lou Piniella this week and apologized to the Cubs manager for his criticism of Piniella's perceived handling of Kosuke Fukudome.

Cuddyer double error

Minnesota started Michael Cuddyer at first base in an effort to give Justin Morneau the day off. The move came back to haunt the Twins in the fifth inning. On a Chris Getz bouncer to first with two out Cuddyer booted the ball, allowing Paul Konerko to score from third. Then Cuddyer threw the ball away at first, allowing the White Sox runners to move up. Cuddyer is charged with two errors, and the White Sox knotted the game at 1-1.

Gregg still the guy in Chicago

CBSsports.com reports that despite Carlos Marmol's opportunity to save tonight, Kevin Gregg is still the Cubs' closer. Gregg blew his latest save opportunity but will be the man Lou Piniella calls on Sunday if the Cubs have a save chance.

Swisher swats the ball with Teixeira out

Nick Swisher played in place of Mark Teixeira at first base on Saturday while Teixeira tends to a sore left wrist. Swisher put up Teixeira-type numbers with a homer and a triple, recording three RBI in the 6-1 Yankees win. Swisher is hitting .538.

Fantasy Impact: Teixeira's issue doesn't sound serious, so expect him to be back in the lineup soon. Swisher is nothing more than a backup at first and in right field, where Xavier Nady beat him for a starting job. If Swisher stays hot, the Yankees might find ways to get him in the lineup.

Fast start for Bonifacio

Emilio Bonifacio collected three more hits tonight against the Mets in an 8-4 Marlins loss. The speedy leadoff man is hitting .583 through 23 at bats and becomes third-base eligible in most leagues by the middle of next week.

Fantasy Impact: Bonifacio offers a nice alternative to Chone Figgins for a speed option at third base. The Marlins and fantasy owners will have to hope his major production lasts for more than one week.

Sabathia money

CC Sabathia earned every bit of his big-money contract with the Yankees today, rolling into the eighth inning against Kansas City with six strikeouts and no earned runs. The Yankees used his stellar performance for a comfortable 6-1 win.

Sabathia is owed $161-million over the next seven seasons in Yankee pinstripes. He started 35 games for the Indians and Brewers last season, so if he keeps up that pace for the next seven years, Sabathia will earn $657,142.86 each time he climbs the hill.

A tale of two pitching statlines

The oddest statline of the day might go to the strange duel between Roy Oswalt and Adam Wainwright. Oswalt needed 89 pitches to get through six innings, giving up six earned runs. Wainwright labored much more than his counterpart, requiring 102 pitches to get through the fifth. Wainwright, however, gave up no runs and just seven base runners to Oswalt's 11, winning the game comfortably, 11-2.

Fantasy Impact: Both pitchers struck out four batters, but Oswalt just left his stuff over the plate more than Wainwright did. The Cardinals ace fought off batter after batter, eventually earning outs instead of base runners. We expect these two to serve as good number two starters in fantasy play.

Pujols Pounds Houston

A healthy Albert Pujols will earn player of the week honors with this type of production. Pujols smacked a grand slam and a three-run shot against the Astros, good for seven RBI, as the Cardinals cruse, 11-2. Pujols is closing in on double-digit RBI in week one.

More Mora

Melvin Mora powered the Baltimore Orioles past the Tampa Bay Rays with a first-inning grand slam that put the game out of reach from the outset. Baltimore beats Tampa, 6-0.

Fantasy Impact: Mora might be 37 years old, but he's saved his best baseball for the second half of his career. Since turning 30 he's totaled double digits in home runs every year. He's a middle-of-the-road third baseman who can keep you afloat offensively with an average right around .280 and 20 blasts.

Oh, Myers!

The Phillies Brett Myers is well on his way to making home run history in 2009. Myers gave up three home runs against the Colorado Rockies Saturday night, equaling the three blasts he served up to Atlanta on opening night. That's six home runs in two starts, which multiplies out to 90 homers over 30 starts, shattering both Jose Lima's National League record of 48 homers allowed in a single season and Bert Blyleven's Major League single-season record of 50 homers allowed.

Of course Myers is on pace to make at least 32 starts as the Phillies opening day starter, which means he could push 100 homers if he keeps up the pace!

Update: The Phillies win the game, 8-4 as Myers has never lost to Colorado.

Fantasy Impact: Myers is a power pitcher with streaks of both good and bad. He's a decent third option in a fantasy rotation who will provide as much risk as reward.

Doumit dominates Reds

Ryan Doumit lifted a ninth-inning grand slam off of Reds pitcher Mike Lincoln for his first home run of the 2009 season. Doumit goes 3-5 on the afternoon to go along with the run scored and four RBI, lifting his paltry average to .238. The Pirates pounded the Reds, 10-2.

Fantasy Impact: Doumit played in just 116 games in 2008 thanks to breaking his thumb mid-season. He's one of those rare plus-average, plus-power catchers. Consider him a lesser Brian McCann; a backstop capable of climbing into the top five at his position as he warms up.

Ryan ripped by Tribe

Toronto closer B.J. Ryan got the Jason Motte treatment Saturday in Cleveland. Following closer candidate Scott Downs, who worked an 18-pitch, one-hit eight, Ryan imploded. With two outs and the bases cleared, Ryan gave up a single, a pair of walks and a three-RBI double to Mark DeRosa. Jays manager Cito Gaston promptly pulled Downs, and Jason Frasor struck out Victor Martinez to clinch a 5-4 save.

Fantasy Impact: We continue to watch closely as Downs out-pitches Ryan and looks better equipped for the closer role at this time. Frasor got the save chance because Downs was already used in the eighth.

Scott Lewis disabled

Indians starter Scott Lewis landed on the disabled list with soreness in his elbow. Vinnie Chulk takes his place on the roster.

Lewis' last two Cactus League starts weren't good ones. He gave up 15 runs on 21 hits in 6 2/3 innings and told reporters the dry air was affecting his ability to grip the ball. He had one last spring tuneup in a Minor League intrasquad, but that was merely a three-inning warmup. Lewis said the elbow gave him trouble the more he pitched and the more he got up and down between innings.

"It kept getting worse, and I think that's why I haven't been finishing pitches," he said. "I had been over-rotating my changeup and putting extra stress on it. It's just not calming down with treatment. Hopefully it's just tendinitis or something and the shutdown will help."

Fantasy Impact: There's no word on how serious the injury is at this point. Lewis wasn't much of a fantasy option. He was a surprise to make Cleveland's rotation in the first place. Chulk will work out of the bullpen, so we'll wait on Cleveland's consideration for a fifth starter during Lewis' absence.

Love for Crede

Joe Crede's return to Chicago's south side as a member of the Minnesota Twins is a memorable one. In a hilarious moment, Crede walked to the plate with "All Out of Love" spilling out of the U.S. Cellular Field PA system and the White Sox faithful greeting him with a standing ovation. Crede smiled at the plate and then silenced the crowd with a home run to left field off of Jose Contreras. The Twins rolled the White Sox, 12-5.

Fantasy Impact: Crede may never get back to the level of his 30-homer 2006 season, but he's certainly a threat to post 20 homers and knock in 90 runs in a good Twins lineup. Crede's off to a .188 start through four games, and he's only a .257 lifetime hitter. Consider him a sleeper in 2009 who is capable of finishing the year in the top 10 of all third basemen.

Not Motte?

Jason Motte appears in danger of losing his closer job. The Cardinals rookie pitched to three Houston batters in the ninth inning, giving up a pair of singles sandwiched around a fly out. That was enough for Tony La Russa, who pulled Motte for Kyle McClellan. McClellan finished the job with a strikeout of Kaz Matsui followed by a fielder's choice ground out off the bat of Hunter Pence. Cardinals win, 5-3.

Fantasy Impact: Motte's confidence must be sinking. After he surrendered four runs on four hits on opening night, Ryan Franklin became the standby closer for game two and Dennys Reyes picked up a save the next night. Now Motte gets pulled for another youngster who, like Motte, had just one career save before Friday night.

It looks like closer by committee in St. Louis until a hot hand emerges, and a solitary stud is what La Russa would like to see emerge.

Tigers beat up Benson

Kris Benson hadn't pitched in the Majors since late September, 2006, and his five innings in Detroit Friday made the Rangers starter look like he hasn't pitched in years. Benson gave up a 4th inning grand slam to Miguel Cabrera and a solo shot to Jeff Larish to open the 5th. Seven earned runs through five innings is not what the Rangers had in mind when they picked Benson up off the scrap heap in the offseason. Texas trails 8-0 in the 6th.

Fantasy Impact: We're not willing to write off Benson after one outing, but you can leave him on the fantasy waiver wire until he finds some productive consistency. He threw very well in the spring.